


A Good Resolution

by brienne_lannister_of_tarth



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, First Kiss, New Year's Eve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-14
Updated: 2015-02-14
Packaged: 2018-03-10 01:50:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3272315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brienne_lannister_of_tarth/pseuds/brienne_lannister_of_tarth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jaime and Brienne meet at a party on New Year's Eve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Good Resolution

**Author's Note:**

> ...okay, that was probably the worst summary I've ever written :D  
>  This work is based on a prompt for JBHoliday on tumblr by via14lol.  
> The prompt was: Modern AU, both at University together, so they are at a New Years Eve party, and when the clock strikes midnight the promoters turn off the lights and you get to kiss who ever you want and of course Jaime kisses Brienne

It was nine p.m. when Jaime and Brienne first saw each other that evening. 

They were both students at King's Landing University and had a few classes together, but to say that they were friends was exaggerated. They hardly ever talked outside of a classroom, and in class they argued most of the time because their views on things were as different as night and day. 

Also, their groups of friends did not interact a lot. Brienne was accompanied by Margaery, Sansa and Asha most of the time. Sometimes Sansa brought her younger sister Arya along, and a month ago they had met Ygritte who joined them almost every time now when they went out together. Brienne often wondered why the other girls had decided to befriend her. All of them were so much more attractive than her, and as a child she had been told by her nanny that she would never make friends if she didn't care more about her looks and didn't behave more like a lady. But apparently her nanny had been wrong, and Brienne was really happy about that. 

Jaime, on the other hand, kept close to Sansa's brothers Robb and Jon, Asha's brother Theon and his own brother Tyrion. If he was being honest, they were not the kind of friends he'd chosen at High School. Back then, he had only cared about money and pretty girls and had looked for friends who could provide him with one of these things. Maybe it was true what Tyrion said; maybe he was really growing up.

The only thing Jaime and Brienne seemed to have in common was their bad luck in finding love. Only last year, Jaime had finally managed to get rid of Cersei, his clingy stepsister. With her being around, Jaime had never managed to even talk to a girl long enough to get to know her a bit, because Cersei had been terribly jealous and had driven all of them off. But even now, Jaime had not met a girl he had really liked. Most of them only cared about his good looks and his money, but he was looking for more than that.

Brienne had been the victim of a bet between some idiots who had tried to get her into their beds. The first one to be lucky should have gotten a great amount of money from the others. After having found out about the bet by coincidence, Brienne had punched one of them in the face the next time he approached her. After that, it had been really difficult for her to trust other people. And she had earned a certain reputation for punching a guy, so the rest of them kept their distance. She didn't really mind most of the time, but sometimes she asked herself if she was going to be single for the rest of her life, and that thought made her sad.

Brienne was just discussing some hockey results with Asha (they were both on KLU's team) when Sansa interrupted them, “Oh look, my brothers and their friends are here!” Brienne looked in the direction that Sansa had pointed out. When her eyes met Jaime's, she just nodded at him and focused on her conversation again. She didn't notice that Jaime looked at her just a little bit longer, and if anyone had asked Jaime about that, he would have denied it.

***********************

At ten p.m., they talked to each other for the first time. They met at the bar, both waiting to get a drink.

“Wench, some children's drink for you? A lemonade, maybe?” Jaime greeted her with the same grin Brienne had noticed many times during their discussions in class.

“Very funny, Lannister. What about you, hard stuff that knocks you out before it's even midnight?” she shot back.

“Fair enough. A beer, maybe? I'll pay.” Brienne was confused; he was more friendly than she had ever seen him. He must have noticed, because he quickly added, “Don't get used to it, wench. Next time in class, I'll shout at you again because you're so stubborn and won't even try to understand me.” Brienne thought about saying that he didn't try to understand her either, but then decided against it.

Once they had their drinks, Brienne thought he would leave. But he stayed and asked, “So...any resolutions for the new year?”

“I will study more. I want a good job after uni, so I have to be at the top of my classes.”

“You're so boring, wench. Nothing exciting planned?”

“I'm afraid not, sorry to disappoint you. How about you?” She was really curious now; what kind of plans would a guy like him have?

His answer was a bit disappointing: “I don't believe in things like these. It's just humbug, if you ask me.”

“If you say so...but if you don't believe in New Year's resolutions, why did you ask me if I had any?”

“Because, wench, you're exactly the kind of person to believe in this stuff. And I was just being curious.”

Before Brienne could react to that, he changed the topic. “By the way, what will you do at midnight?”

Brienne was confused again. “I'm not sure I understand. What am I supposed to do then?”

“Don't you know about this? They switch off the light, and you may kiss whomever you want to kiss,” he told her with a grin. Brienne just stared at him. “Oh dear...you really didn't know? Well...good luck then!” Saying this, he left her standing at the bar, staring after him.

*********************

At eleven p.m., Jaime noticed Oberyn Martell approaching Brienne. 

Of course, there was nothing special or suspicious about that; Brienne was totally allowed to talk to him. And of course, he had NOT been watching her for the last 30 minutes, hoping to catch her eye again because he really liked the colour of her eyes...

“What does HE want now?” Jaime thought out loud.

Robb had heard him and answered his question, “Didn't you know? Oberyn and Brienne have become good friends lately. But why do you care? I never noticed you being close to her in any way. And you're not her father, you don't actually have to approve of the people she talks to.”

“I don't really care,” Jaime answered. “I just think she should be careful. After all, Oberyn has a certain reputation.”

“Jaime...seriously, man, you sound a bit jealous,” Robb couldn't help noticing.

Jaime just snorted...but to be honest, Robb was right – he was actually jealous. He had never seen Brienne talk to another guy than him, not since that incident with these idiots. Men seemed to be a bit intimidated by her and left her alone. He didn't exactly know why, but he liked the thought of being the only man she talked to, even though they argued most of the time and next to never talked outside of class. When she talked about something that was important to her, she became very passionate at times, and her eyes lit up. Jaime had more than once noticed how beautiful her eyes were. He also had more than once provoked her on purpose, just to get that reaction out of her. And sometimes, when he sat in his dorm room and was supposed to be studying, he wondered what she was doing right now, and what it would be like to have her in his life.

Seeing Oberyn behaving friendly towards Brienne and not being pushed away was something Jaime never would have expected – and it certainly wasn't anything he wanted to witness. He could see Oberyn placing a hand on Brienne's shoulder and turned away; he didn't want to know where this was going. 

**********************

Brienne was listening to Sansa talking about her latest crush when Oberyn approached her. She was always happy to see him. They had met for the first time on his second day at KLU; she had run into him while he had tried to find his lecture hall. She had offered to show him around a bit, and he had gladly accepted. So they had spent the afternoon together, and Brienne had started to like him very soon. He wasn't scared of her; when she had told him what had happened to her, he had just told her that she had done the right thing. He was always kind and encouraging, but never expected anything from her she wasn't willing to give.

“Hello, lovely Lady of Tarth,” he greeted her with a smile that would make other girls swoon. “So, how are my chances of being kissed at midnight?”

“By me, by the girls who have followed you around ever since you arrived, or by your girlfriend?” she asked back. When he just smiled, she added, “Oberyn, there is only one guy I'd like to kiss...but I doubt that he would even consider me...”

“Oh Brienne...if you want Jaime Lannister to kiss you, all you have to do is ask him, believe me.”

Brienne was shocked. “What...how did you...”

“I'm not blind. I see the way you look at him...and the way he looks at you, by the way. There's not much of a difference.”

Brienne sighed and said, “You're only right about one thing. The Gods help me, I have no idea why, but I can't get him out of my head. He is infuriating, he provokes me every time we have a discussion in class, he is way too sure of himself...and yet, I think that behind all that, there is a totally different man – a man I'd like to get to know. I feel like I can trust him...and I haven't trusted a guy in ages...”

“And why don't you just tell him all of that?”

“I mean...look at me! How could he want...well, that? He looks like a god, he is charming, and he could have every woman in this room...he would never choose me.”

Oberyn put a hand on her shoulder and said, “Brienne, do you want to know what I see when I look at you? I see a beautiful, strong woman who is capable of loving someone unconditionally and deserves to be loved in the same way. And if he doesn't see this, he is an idiot.”

“The problem is, he CAN be an idiot...” Brienne sighed.

“Trust me,” Oberyn said, “you'll never know if you don't try...” 

****************************

When Oberyn went back to Ellaria, his lover who had come from Dorne to spend New Year's Eve with him, he was stopped by Jaime.

“So...you and Brienne? Never would have guessed,” Jaime said. He sounded like he didn't care, but Oberyn could see in his eyes that he actually cared a lot. “Just do me a favour, okay?” Jaime continued, not giving Oberyn the opportunity to tell him the truth. “Don't hurt her. She's been through enough.”

“Jaime, you're completely wrong,” Oberyn interrupted him. “I like Brienne very much and I'd do anything for her, but we're just friends. And even if I was interested in more than friendship, I wouldn't stand a chance. There's someone else on her mind.”

“Really? And who is that supposed to be?” Jaime asked.

Oberyn shook his head. These two...they made it more complicated than it actually was. “Why don't you ask her?” he said before he continued looking for Ellaria. He hoped that one of them would finally make the first move tonight.

*************************

Ten minutes to midnight, Jaime had finally gathered his courage and was approaching Brienne. 

He had been thinking about Oberyn's words a lot since their conversation. He wasn't totally sure about it, but maybe he was actually the guy Brienne liked. At least, he hoped that Oberyn had meant that; he hadn't been very specific. Jaime just knew that he wanted to know, and he also had an idea how to find out about Brienne's feelings.

************************

“Oh look, Jaime is coming over here,” Margaery said and smiled at Brienne. “Now what do you think he might want?”

“I have no idea...why do you ask me?”

Margaery grinned. “I saw you talking to him earlier, you know. I thought...”

“Whatever you thought, you're wrong. We're not friends, we're not lovers or whatever you call it, there's nothing going on,” Brienne stated. 

“You don't know that, right? For all you know, he could be totally into you,” Margaery argued. 

“I DO know. He isn't interested. And that's fine with me.”

Margaery shook her head. “Brienne, please stop lying to yourself. I know...oh, hi Jaime!”

**************************

Jaime had arrived and grinned at them. “Hello ladies! It's almost midnight...who are you going to kiss?” Her friends giggled and blushed, but Brienne just rolled her eyes at him.

“Listen, Jaime...” she began, but then someone at the other end of the room shouted “TEN!”, and the rest joined in the countdown and there was no possibility of having a normal conversation now. Eventually they all shouted “HAPPY NEW YEAR!”, the fireworks started and the lights were switched off – and suddenly, Brienne could feel Jaime's lips on her own.

*****************************

Oberyn had kept his eyes on Jaime and Brienne the whole time, and he had been happy to see that Jaime had kissed her. But he never would have guessed Brienne's reaction. He was very confused as he saw her slapping Jaime and then leaving the room. Oberyn was thinking about going after her, but then he saw Jaime following her, and he knew that things would turn out okay. 

****************************

When Jaime finally caught up with Brienne, she had already left the building and was walking in the direction of her dorm. “Brienne, wait! Please!” he shouted, but she kept walking. He started running and soon had caught up with her. He grabbed her wrist, and finally she stopped and turned around. “Why did you do this?” he asked her.

“Me? Why did YOU do this?” she asked back. He could see in her eyes that she was very confused and maybe also a bit scared. So he decided to be honest with her. She deserved that much.

“I did it because I wanted to. Is that so hard to believe?” 

“Jaime, please don't mock me. You can't be serious,” she answered, and it almost broke Jaime's heart to hear how sad she sounded.

“Brienne, please listen to me. I know what these idiots did to you. I know that they hurt you. But I swear that I'm not like them. This is not a joke to me, not at all. I admit that kissing you was maybe a bit forward, but it's honestly what I wanted to do. I guess I wanted to do this for a while now.”

When she didn't interrupt him, he continued, “You know...I think I might have a New Year's resolution after all...” 

“And what might that be?” she asked. 

“You. I want to get to know you better, and I want you to get to know me. I want to spend as much time with you as possible. And most important of all, I will try to convince you that I'm really serious about this, about us. And who knows, maybe next year we will know whom to kiss at midnight...so, what do you think?”

Brienne didn't answer immediately. She looked into his eyes, and he didn't know what she saw there, but eventually she smiled and said, “I think I might like that.”

Jaime smiled at her, kissed her forehead and said, “Happy New Year, Brienne.”

“Happy New Year, Jaime.”


End file.
